First strikes, how effective are they?

[Fuzzypanda]

I am curious if anyone knows exactly how much effect first strikes, such as those on archers and the drill promotion have on combat odds. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[VladTepes]

Ahhh, grasshopper, he who strikes first also strikes last.

The greater chance to strike the first blow is often the difference between a unit losing or just sqeaking by in combat. Have you ever watched combat, where a unit who "hesistates" gets killed?

 

[Murky]

First strike means that when a unit with First Strike gets the initiative in battle. They get to attack and do their damage first. Damage is applied before the enemy unit gets to attack. If the first strike results in a kill then the first strike unit takes no damage. It gets fuzzy is when there are multiple first strikes on both sides or chances of extra first strikes or when there is collateral damage.

 

[Thalatta]

There's an excellent thread on how combat works in the strategy articles section: Combat Explained.

From what I understand, a summary of first strikes is as follows:
For each first strike, there is a round of combat (at the beginning of combat - otherwise it wouldn't be first) in which only the first striker can do damage. If the first striker loses the round, nobody does or is dealt damage. First strike chances give a 50% chance for a first strike.

My experience with first strikes is that they matter most when a unit is favored - it will often be damaged less than would seem normal given the odds of winning (and sometimes not at all). It logically follows that this is due to winning the first strike round, which meant fewer normal rounds were required to win and thus fewer chances to deal damage were available to the opposing unit.

As far as the drill promotions go, I assume you're thinking of the protective trait. While the first strike chance can be handy, I'd value the city garrison I promotion much more highly, especially as it allows for city garrison II immediately with a barracks and city garrison III with something like theocracy. Only if a unit had city garrison III would I probably consider any further drill promotions - and then I'd probably just go for the combat promotions instead. First strikes are nice, but I've always found increased strength to be far more useful.

 

[Murky]

First Strike

First strike round(s) are special. The number of them is determined by looking at the number of first strike rounds of the attacker and the defender. Whichever number is greater gets the difference of values in first strike opportunities. For x-y first strikes (possible first strikes), the math is still unproven, but it looks like a 50% likelihood of getting a first strike each "round" possible.

A first strike round is like any other round, except that the first striker is the only one who can do damage. For example, if the attacker has two first strikes and the defender zero, the first two rounds have two possibilities – the attacker wins so the defender loses damage or the defender “wins” and nobody gets hurt. The odds in this round are just like any other. The first striker is just immune to damage.

This is the description given in the "Combat Explained" article.

 

[Fuzzypanda]

Thanks for the link